Milly Scott

Biography

Marion Henriëtte Louise Molly (born 29 December 1933), known professionally as Milly Scott, is a Dutch singer and actress of Surinamese origin, best known for her participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 1966. She is recognised as the first Black singer to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Early life

Scott was born in Den Helder, the main base of the Royal Netherlands Navy, where her father was stationed as a marine. Both her parents were immigrants from the colony of Surinam: her father, Harry Molly (1941–1943), was born in Commewijne as the illegitimate child of a washerwoman, while her mother, Lien Bruininger (1903–1986), was born in Paramaribo. The couple had five children, of which Scott is the eldest. She was one of only few Black children living in Den Helder at the time, and regularly faced xenophobia while growing up.
During the German invasion of the Netherlands in 1940, the ship HNLMS Johan Maurits van Nassau was bombed near Callantsoog, severely wounding Scott's father. Upon his recovery, the family moved to Amsterdam. In 1942, Scott's father was summoned and taken to Germany as a prisoner of war. He died of abdominal tuberculosis in Ludwigsburg the following year.
Scott's mother was supported in the upbringing of her children by a befriended couple, with whom Scott lived in Westerblokker for some time. Having learned to play the piano during the war, she started giving performances to financially support her mother after her father's death. At the age of 14, she began singing in amateur bands and was eventually given a scholarship to study at the conservatory in Amsterdam. However, she dropped out due to intense racism and bullying she experienced during her studies.

Early career

In 1953, at the age of 19, Scott was asked by Dutch comedian Toon Hermans to perform in one of his shows. According to Hermans, the name Milly suited her better than her birth name Marion. Following her mother's advice not to use her real surname, she then came up with the stage name Milly Scott. After performing in front of a big audience for the first time, she quickly built up a career as a jazz singer, with Lou van Rees as her impresario.
Working as a singer, she lived in Hamburg, West Germany from 1954, and later moved to Sweden where she stayed for five years. In Gothenburg and Stockholm, she shared the stage with world-famous artists, such as Judy Garland and Quincy Jones. Furthermore, she maintained a close friendship with Swedish-Dutch singer Cornelis Vreeswijk, whom she regularly visited at his home in Lidingö.

Return to the Netherlands and Eurovision Song Contest

Scott was rediscovered in the Netherlands following her participation in the Knokke Song Festival of 1962, alongside Anneke Grönloh, Max Woiski Jr., Mieke Telkamp, José Marcello and Joke Copier. She subsequently made frequent appearances in Dutch television shows, including Johnny & Rijk and Zo is het toevallig ook nog 's een keer, and was later given her own programme by VARA, titled Scott in de roos (after the phrase schot in de roos, meaning 'bullseye').
In 1966, Scott was asked to participate in the Nationaal Songfestival, the Dutch national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest. She went on to win the national final with the song "Fernando en Filippo", written by Gerrit den Braber and composed by Kees de Bruyn. This gave her the right to represent the Netherlands in the eleventh edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, held in Luxembourg City. Her entry received a total of two points from the international juries, placing fifteenth out of eighteen songs.
Although "Fernando en Filippo" was a novelty song (and was also performed as such) at a time when ballads dominated in the competition, Scott would later claim that her disappointing result was attributable, at least in part, to racism on the part of the voting jurors.

Career after Eurovision

Although Scott never produced any hit records, she managed to maintain a successful career as a jazz singer, performing in various countries across Europe. She also branched out into acting and featured in a number of theatre and television productions, including the Snip en Snap-revue (1970) and West Side Story (1974). Her best-known role was in the RTL 4 drama series Vrouwenvleugel (1993–1995) in which she played Baby Miller, a prisoner trying to come to terms with her racial identity.

Personal life

Scott married and divorced three times, repeatedly experiencing domestic violence in her marriages. She has lived in Hoorn since 2002.

Film

De vuurproef, 1968 – Tituba
The Fox and the Hound, 1981 – Big Mama (Dutch voice)

Television

Die Affäre Lerouge, 1976 – Juliette Chaffour's Maid
Vrouwenvleugel, 1995 (season 3; 22 episodes) – Baby Miller
Goede tijden, slechte tijden, 2005 (season 15; 3 episodes) – Dorothea